Baseball mitt



Jan. 18, 1955 w, 1-. TOMPKINS BASEBALL MITT Filed Oct. 31, 1951 IN VENTOR BY W 5&5, Vyim/ ATTORNEY United States Patent BASEBALL MITT Walter T.. Tompkins, Noc0na,. Tex.

Application October 31, 1951, Serial No. 254,131

1 Claim. (Cl. 219) This invention relates to baseball mitts of the kind which comprise a thumb and finger section and a backstop member interposed between the thumb and finger section in such manner that the finger and thumb sections are caused to move inwardly towards one another when a ball is caught in the glove. More particularly, this invention relates to improvements in the type of baseball mitt specified which permits adjustment of the ball receiving pocket of the glove, and which at the same time provides reinforcement for the backstop member which considerably improves the wearing qualities of the glove.

Baseball mitts of the type referred to above are sometimes constructed so that the backstop member which is interposed between the thumb and finger portions of the glove is formed from integral extensions of the front and back facing pieces of the mitt. The side edges of the backstop portion are ordinarily connected by leather strands to the mutually facing edges of the respective finger and thumb portions. The front and back facing pieces of the glove are secured together along their top and side edges in the usual manner, the bottom edges being left open to provide access to the hand receiving cavity formed between the front and back facing pieces. The hand receiving cavity is ordinarily provided with a lining which permits the thumb to be positioned in the thumb portion of the glove and all of the fingers in the finger portion thereof. It will be appreciated that the design of a glove of this kind is such that the backstop member receives the direct impact of a ball caught in the glove, and that the construction is such that this portion of the glove is no more durably constructed than, for example, the adjacent thumb and finger portions which are subjected to much less wear. As a result, it has been found that in use the backstop member wears more quickly than the remaining portions of the face of the glove and soon loses the rigidity which is necessary for the glove to function properly, as it is apparent that the ball receiving pocket will become altogether too deep to permit the ball to be withdrawn and at the same time will be considerably reduced in cross-sectional area.

One of the principal objects of this invention is to provide a glove having a backstop member which is constrncted in a manner which permits the backstop member to be reinforced against wear, and, at the same time, makes it possible to increase the range of adjustment of the size of the ball receiving pocket. Further advantages and objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the detailed embodiment of the invention which is illustrated in the accompanying draw mgs.

Figure l is a perspective view of a base mitt embodying the instant invention, looking towards the face of the mitt;

Figure 2 is a partial top plan view of the mitt illustrating the manner in which the backstop member may be adjusted to vary the size and depth of the ball receiving pocket; and

Figure 3 is a similar view illustrating a further type of adjustment of the ball receiving pocket which may be made in a mitt constructed according to the present invention.

Referring to Figure 1, it may be seen that the base mitt comprises a front facing piece 10 and a back facing piece 12 of the same general outline which are joined together along their side and top margins by a leather lace 14 which is passed through registering eyelets provided along the edges of the front and back facing pieces. The front facing piece 10 comprises a palm portion 16 and extend ing therefrom. a finger portion 18, backstop portions 20, 22,.a-nd a thumb portion 24. In the customary manner, padding is provided between the glove lining (not shown) and the facing piece 10. to protect the hand of the one wearing the glove. The bulk. of the padding thus provided is'placed in the finger portion 18, the thumb portion 24 and across the heel of the glove, thereby covering the hand of one wearing the glove and providing a centrall'y positioned pocket for receiving the ball. The base of the ball receiving pocket thus consists principally of the backstop pieces 20, 22 and the section of the palm portion 16 which lies between the index finger and the thumb of one wearing the glove.

As seen best in Figure 1, the backing piece 12 is provided with extensions 26, 28 which correspond to, and are joined to, the backstop portions 20, 22. The inner corresponding edges of the members 20, 26 are joined to either side of the seam strip 30, and similarly, the members 22 and 28 are joined to either side of the seam strip 32. Either edge of the backstop member is connected to the thumb and finger portions, respectively, by the laces 36 and 38. It will be seen that this construction of the backstop member increases the rigidity of the member over that which is obtained by forming the backstop from a single integral extension from the palm piece 16, the seam strips 30 and 32, as well as the stitching, serving as reinforcement for the backstop member. A further advantage of the construction described is that the lacing 34 which joins together the mutually facing edges of the backstop portions 20, 26 and 22, 28 extends slightly above the surface of the portions 20, 22, and thus serves to protect the backstop member from the wearing contact of a ball caught in the glove. The useful life of the glove is thereby considerably extended by preventing the backstop portion from wearing out prematurely with respect to the remaining portions of the face of the glove.

The two-piece construction of the backstop member also makes it possible for the depth of the ball receiving pocket to be adjusted according to individual preference. This may be done by loosening or tightening the lace 34 which serves to join together the members 20, 26 and 22, 28. An adjustment of the backstop member whereby the ball receiving pocket may be deepened is illustrated in Figure 2 of the drawing.

A further adjustment of the ball receiving pocket may be obtained by overlapping the upper portions of the members 20, 26 and 22, 28 as illustrated in Figure 3. This results in narrowing the face of the glove, as may be desirable in some instances, as well as giving the upper edge of the glove a more inward curvature and thus deepening the ball receiving pocket.

The construction of the backstop member in two pieces also makes it possible for the glove to be closed up or clinched in the hand without destroying the smooth contour of the ball receiving pocket, as may result from the palm piece wrinkling and separating from the lining which immediately underlies it. This action results from the fact that when the glove is closed or clinched the members 20, 26 of the backstop may move laterally with respect to the finger portion 18 and pass either in front of or behind the members 22, 28. In a glove having the backstop member constructed of a single piece closing or clinching of the glove would result in wrinkling the facing of the backstop and, as the backstop is integral with the front facing piece, also result in the palm piece wrinkling and separating from the lining in the ball receiving pocket.

It will be apparent that the foregoing detailed description with reference to the particular embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings is made for the purpose of facilitating an understanding of the invention, and is not to be construed as to limiting the invention otherwise than expressed in the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and is desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

A baseball mitt comprising generally similar front and back facing pieces, each of said pieces having a palm portion and separate thumb portion, finger portion and backstop portion, each backstop portion being intermediate the thumb and finger portions and extending forwardly from and integral with the associated palm portion, the corresponding portions of said front and back pieces being joined together along their side and forward margins so as to form a glove having a ball-receiving pocket, the outer edges of each of said backstop portions being connected to the adjacent thumb and finger portions, respectively, by lacing members, and each of said backstop portions being longitudinally divided into two relatively narrow tongues, the line dividing said tongues from each other extending to said palm portion, the corresponding front and back tongues being connected together along the said dividing line to define a pair of separated backstop members, and lacings adiustably connecting the adjacent edges of the connected pairs of tongues whereby said pairs of tongues are adjustably united in such manner as to form a distinctive backstop portion the width of which may be modified and the shape of the ball-receiving pocket simultaneously altered.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,281,315 Latina Apr. 28, 1942 10 2,452,695 Sonnett et a1 Nov. 2, 1948 2,558,544 Delsalle June 26, 1951 

